THE BLUE BULLS have confirmed the signing of former Springbok Arno Botha from Munster.
The 28-year-old has been with Munster since 2018, having joined from London Irish, but will return home to play in South Africa with the Bulls, joining in July if travel restrictions allow.
Munster opted against re-contracting Botha beyond this summer, with young back rows like Jack O’Sullivan and John Hodnett now expected to push on to compete with more established figures like CJ Stander, Peter O’Mahony, Jack O’Donoghue, and Tommy O’Donnell.
“Arno has been a great addition to the Munster squad and will be missed,” said Munster boss Johann van Graan.
“I’ve no doubt the Bulls Family are delighted to see him return to his home province as he is a quality signing. We wish Arno all the best for the future and thank him for his time in red.”
Former South Africa U20 captain Botha instead returns to where his career kicked off.
“As one door closes another one opens, and with this in mind I just want to thank the Vodacom Bulls for the opportunity to be part of the Bulls Family again, especially in this time,” said Botha.
“The Bulls have always and will always be a special part of my life and I’m looking forward to being back at Loftus. It’s awesome to be heading home.”
Botha broke into professional rugby with the Pretoria-based Bulls in 2011 and stayed there until 2017, winning two caps for the Springboks during that time.
Botha joined London Irish on a short-term deal in 2018 and then moved to Ireland to link up with Munster that summer, going on to make more than 40 appearances for the province in the Pro14 and Champions Cup.
Having recently appointed 2007 World Cup winner Jake White as their head coach, the Bulls are currently on a recruitment drive and the addition of Botha follows the signings of Marcel van der Merwe and Gio Aplon.
“Arno is a proud son of Loftus, and there is no doubt that the fans will be ecstatic to see him back,” said White. “He started his rugby journey here and played all of his junior rugby in blue.
“There were big things expected from him from a young age, and he has now grown into a complete and well balanced loosie. It’s no secret that we are in the process of building something very special at Loftus, and Arno is going to be a huge part of that.”
